US gov't to promote citizenship in ad campaign

Advertisements might help reach immigrants who are on the fence about becoming citizens, said Thomas Donahoe, citizenship coordinator at the Orange Education Center in California, though he questioned whether they'd be spurred to action.

Reasons why immigrants put off applying to naturalize include competing interests in home countries that may, or may not, recognize dual citizenship. Others can't afford $680 in application-related fees.

On a day-to-day basis, many immigrants don't feel much of a difference exists between having a green card and being a citizen - except maybe when elections roll around and they can't vote.

Sonia Gomez, an administrative secretary, came to this country from Mexico when she was a year old. Ever since, she's had a green card. Except for when she visits her relatives in Mexico and needs to dig up her passport, the 39-year-old said she doesn't think much about her citizenship.

"It is a fleeting thought in my mind," said Gomez, of Orange, Calif. "It just pops up every now and then, and then it just goes away."